For those who have not heard, the property for which this petition was started is pending sale to St. Peter's Church. The representatives of St. Peter's brought forth their first proposal at the May neighborhood association meeting. They listened to feedback and requests for additional buffers and green space, and have their landscape architect firm working on adding additional greenery.
This week, the Neighborhood Association will vote on a parking variance that would allow the church to use all four sides of the lot for parking, rather than just placing it behind the church.
There has been some confusion and misinformation regarding whether this vote is for or against the church itself, with individuals insisting that a 'no' vote on this part of the parking plan is a vote against the church and signals a desire to tell the church that they are not welcome.
That is simply not true. Every resident has the right to vote without fear of retaliation or intimidation, knowing that their opposition to a part of the plan will not be perceived as opposition to the church.
This is a single-issue vote, and the church has indicated that they are working on a plan that would show what both best-case scenarios would look like with and without the variance. It's unclear if both will be available before the vote.
To restate clearly:
- THIS IS NOT A VOTE FOR OR AGAINST THE CHURCH.
- THIS IS NOT A VOTE FOR OR AGAINST THE EXCESSIVE NUMBER OF PARKING SPACES BEING PROPOSED (215 VS THE CITY MAXIMUM OF APPROX. 90). THE NEIGHBORHOOD WILL NOT VOTE ON THIS AS THE CHURCH HAS STATED THEIR INTENTION TO USE AN ALTERNATIVE PROCESS THAT RELIES ON CITY STAFF FOR APPROVAL. *(See below)
- THIS IS NOT RELATED TO THE COMBINATION OF PROPERTIES THAT WILL GO TO THE SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE AT A LATER DATE.
The reason for the special meeting was to accommodate the church's current closing date for the purchase of the properties, which is currently scheduled for June 30th.
While this may be our only neighborhood vote related to the plan, it is a vote on "Front Yard Parking."
Our vote is merely a recommendation for the Zoning Board of Adjustment, which will again consider the single issue of "Front yard parking" on June 12th at 3:00 p.m. at City Hall.
The overwhelming shared consensus is that St. Peter's purchasing the space is a tremendous win and asset for the neighborhood. That said, there is no vote for/against the church; there is only this vote planned at this time.
Reminder: We are in this together! If this sale and plan are approved, we will have successfully defeated the effort to rezone this property and build something 99.9% of the neighborhood opposed. We will be replacing one church with another.
We were told it couldn't be done, and here we are. I'll leave this petition online as a way to share information until it is no longer needed.
Crestline NA Agenda
June 5, 2025, 6pm
Fellowship Hall
Hope Community Church
*Per the city: When a development includes parking in excess of the maximum allowed they have 3 options: Reduce the number of parking spaces, request a varience through the ZBA or use Low Impact Development techniques such as, bio-retention cells, vegetated swales, extended detention systems, infiltration trenches, tuck-under parking, pervious paving or dry wells, to reduce run-off at a rate as established in the City of Birmingham Post Construction Storm Water Design Manual is required for those parking spaces which exceed the maximum number of spaces allowed as determined by the Director.
The Church would submit a plan that would be reviewed by the City's Stormwater Team, City Engineer and Planning Team. After their review, they send a recommendation to the Director of Planning, Engineering & Permits. The Director will then make a determination based off the review provided by Staff.